The U.S. Army just announced $15M in new funding contracts with 10 small businesses to transition their innovative solutions in engineering sciences and weapons, information systems, and other critical solutions for the Soldier, from concept to prototype.

The companies will each receive up to $1.7M for an 18-month period through the Army Applied Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, which releases contract opportunities on an ad-hoc, rolling basis for U.S.-based small companies to take on some of the Army’s most critical priorities.

“We’ve been working to put innovation back into the SBIR program—not just from a technology standpoint, but from a business policy standpoint as well,” said Dr. Matt Willis, Director, Director of Army Prize Competitions and Army Applied SBIR Program, in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (ASA(ALT)). “The primary focus of our program is to develop, deliver and transition technology to benefit the Army, as well as small businesses, so we’re excited to see these companies move from Phase I to Phase II in their technology development.”

This round of awards is part of an Army effort to identify new technology solutions in sensors and information processing, engineering sciences and weapons, microelectronics and phototonics, information systems, and chemical, biological and nuclear defense.

Congratulations to the following companies on their Phase II awards:

• Zeus Research and Technology, Inc, (Huntsville, Alabama) for the

Automatic Gun Location and Orientation System Phase II Proposal

• Luna Innovations Incorporated (Roanoke, Virginia) for the Reusable, Soft Catch System for Large Projectiles Traveling at High Speeds
• Tau Technologies LLC (Albuquerque, New Mexico) for the Turbulence Profiling and Forecasting
• Architecture Technology Corporation (Washington, D.C.) for the Automated Scoring and Collection of Operational Test Audio (ASCOT)
• TITENN Inc. (Orlando, Florida) for the STE LTE Autonomous Adaptive Networks – STE RAN
• AQUILA Inc. (Albuquerque, New Mexico) for the Phase II: Using COTS Technology to Replace GM Tube Technology
• IRFlex Corporation (Danville, Virginia) for the High-Performance Optical Fibers for 100-Watts Infrared Lasers
• TRITON SYSTEMS, INC. (Chelmsford, Massachusetts) for the Active Noise Reduction HGU-56P Aviator Helmet
• PSIBER DATA SYSTEMS INC. (San Diego, California) for the Low Voltage Cable Reflectometer Built in Test Module
• AURA Technologies, LLC (Raleigh, North Carolina) for the Diminishing Manufacturing Source (DMS) Acquisition and Sustainment Tool

“These technologies are essential for the next generation of Army live-synthetic training capabilities, which have significant potential to substantially lower sustainment costs over many decades of ownership,” said Frank Tucker, U.S. Army DEVCOM Soldier Center.

The Army Applied SBIR Program also offers a valuable opportunity for small businesses to interact with Army Soldiers and technical and operational subject matter experts, who provide insight into Army technology needs and guide small businesses through the Army research and development ecosystem. Small businesses are teamed up with technical points of contact (TPOCs) who serve as a resource for companies as they’re developing their technology maturation.

“My favorite approach to investigating ideas might that be a solution for the Soldier is leveraging SBIR program dollars to find cutting-edge technology that can be introduced with no history of production on the commercial market,” said Mark Murray, PEO Soldier’s Air Warrior program and a TPOC for these topics. “The program releases an announcement that attracts people doing core research into the technologies you want to investigate and allows you to work with innovators who are on the cusp of new breakthroughs in their field.”